Producing a fusion reaction utilizing prior art methods requires accelerating ions at sufficient speed for the reaction to occur in an environment having a sufficiently high ion density so that collisions between ions and resulting fusion occurs with useful frequency. Maintaining this ion density has been attempted by confining the ions utilizing various combinations of electric potential differences, magnetic fields, acoustic waves, and inertia. Many prior art systems rely on injecting ions into concentric electrode structures in an effort to cause the ions to repeatedly pass through the center of the spherical structure at sufficient speed and with sufficient ion density to make collisions between the ions likely. Successfully producing fusion reactions at room temperature remains a challenge when utilizing prior art techniques.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,258,402, which was issued to P. T. Farnsworth on Jun. 28, 1966, discloses an electric discharge device for producing interactions between nuclei. The device includes a generally spherical external cathode and a porous, generally spherical internal anode. Applying a voltage between the cathode and anode results in the flow of both electrons and ions towards the center of the anode. Inertia continues to carry the electrons and ions through the center, and then away from the center. As a result of attraction and repulsion forces resulting from opposite and like charges within the system, electrons and ions will then be propelled back towards the center again. The proximity to the center of the reactor results in a likelihood of collisions between the particles.
Robert Hirsch, Inertial Electrostatic Confinement of Ionized Gases, 38 JOURNAL OF APPLIED PHYSICS 4522, October 1967, describes research and experiments involving fusion reactions utilizing concentric spherical, high vacuum systems that are designed to direct electrons and ions radially towards the center of the system. The system described therein includes an ion permeable spherical cathode that is concentrically surrounded by an ion emissive spherical anode. Ions are drawn to the center of the spherical structure not only through the potential difference between the cathode and anode, but also by the presence of a virtual cathode formed by electrons that have been injected into the system. Symmetrically placed ion guns inject pencil-shaped ion beams into the spherical structure. The cathode includes open ports opposite each ion gun. The cathode ports include bias assemblies that are connected through an isolation transformer to a power supply for resisting electron flow out of the cathode and towards the anode.
According to U.S. Pat. No. 5,160,695, discussed in greater detail below, the system described by the above references requires sufficiently high electron current circulating across the system that the required electron currents can only be attained if electrons and/or ions are not removed by collisions with various structures, such as grids and/or walls of the system. Thus, the existence of grid structures in the path of the circulating particle flows prevents the buildup of sufficiently large circulating currents needed to obtain the desired system power gain values.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,160,695, issued to R. W. Bussard on Nov. 3, 1992, discloses a method and apparatus for creating and controlling nuclear fusion reactions. The system uses a substantially spherical electrostatic field geometry in order to accelerate ions in a radial direction towards the center of the sphere. The ions are accelerated at sufficient speed in flux density to initiate ion acoustic waves having wavelengths that is small compared to the radius at which initiation of the waves occurs. The ion acoustic wavelength is nearly an exact integer divisor of the circumference of the sphere at the core radial position at which the onset of ion acoustic waves occurs. This ensures resonance coupling of ion flow with these waves in a tangential direction around the sphere. Incoming particles are trapped in the acoustic wave structures, and effusively move through the core. The resonant coupling of ion motion and ion acoustic waves causes ion/wave collisions within the small core radius. These collisions asked to trap and confine ions by collisional diffusion processes within the core. Electrons are provided to the interior region of the sphere by collisions with neutral gas within the sphere region or by electron injection. Inserting electrons prevents the buildup of positive charge density resulting from ion densification. Ions can also be added by direct injection of energetic ions or by the addition of neutral gas to the ion injection region. In the latter case, the neutral gas is ionized by collisions with electrons or ions. Concentric electrode arrays may be used. These electrodes are wireframe electrodes arranged to form approximately equal areas on a spherical surface surrounding the central region. These electrodes are used to create a potential difference to accelerate ions inward. External concentric electrodes are used to decelerate electrons otherwise driven out of the system by interior ionic accelerating fields, or to accelerate ions inward.
Brian Naranjo, Seth Putterman, and Jim Gimzewski, Observation of Nuclear Fusion Driven by a Pyroelectric Crystal, 434 NATURE 1115, Apr. 28, 2005, describes the utilization of the electromagnetic field of a pyroelectric crystal in a deuterated atmosphere to accelerate a deuteron beam towards a deuterated target. The crystal can be heated or cooled, thereby increasing its spontaneous polarization as well as the accumulated charges on the faces which are normal to the polarization. Heating the crystal reduces the spontaneous discharge of these electrons, facilitating the buildup of a large potential. This potential can then be utilized to accelerate ions.
All of the systems described above are limited by accelerating the ions through a deuterium atmosphere. The deuterium atmosphere causes many sub-threshold collisions and results in wasteful redistribution of kinetic energy. These systems also accelerate ions in a relatively wide cone angle, making effective collisions less probable. Accordingly, there is a need for a fusion reactor that will increase the likelihood of collisions resulting in fusion reactions while reducing collisions that do not result in fusion. There is a further need for a fusion reactor having a means of directing ions towards locations wherein there is a heightened probability of other ions therein, thus increasing the likelihood of fusion producing collisions.